1. In the space below, describe the stasis at the beginning of Trifles. In other words, “Where are we?” “When is it (time, day, and year)?” “Who are the people involved?” “What is the dramatic situation in which the characters find themselves as the play unfolds?” The play was written in 1916 and is assumed to be set in that time period in the rural Midwest, based on a true murder that occurred in Iowa in 1900 that the author, Susan Glaspell, covered as a writer for the Des Moines Daily News. The play is set inside the Wrights' house a day after he was murdered there, presumably sometime in the morning or afternoon. The characters involved are the County Sheriff and his wife (Mrs. Peters), the County Attorney, a witness named Mr. Hale and his wife (Mrs. Hale). Additionally, two characters that are not in the scene but are the center of the story are Mr. Wright, who has been murdered, and his wife, Mrs. Wright (aka Minnie Foster). The play unfolds as the County Sheriff and County Attorney are trying to solve the murder of Mr. Wright, while the women are brought as guests to fetch some things to bring to Mrs. Wright.
2. What is the intrusion that causes the stasis to be broken and the dramatic action to develop, often at an increasingly rapid pace, to the end of the play? I believe the intrusion occurs when Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale find the dead canary in the fancy red box. Prior to unveiling the bird, they found the broken bird cage and didn't think much of it, except that Mrs. Wright enjoyed singing and probably bought a canary from a man selling them a while back. When they find the bird, with its neck wrung, they gasp in horror and this is where the plot pivots and the women become vital characters in the story, as they have found evidence.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place? The events take place at the scene of the crime. The unique factor that is out of the ordinary is that two women, who should not technically be allowed at the scene of the crime, are given permission to come along with the Sheriff and Attorney. This allows the story to unfold where the women start poking through the scene of the crime and eventually stumble upon some important pieces of evidence which they decide to tamper with and remove from the crime scene. Consequently, they have now manipulated the crime scene to make Mrs. Wright look less guilty and completely changed the case. In this time, women were not seen as intelligent, respected members of society, but rather keepers of the household, and not taken seriously. At the beginning of the play, we even see the Sheriff making fun of the women for eyeing the messed up sew job by Mrs. Wright on a quilt.
4. State the dramatic question or questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.) Clearly, the reader wants to know who murdered Mr. Wright and what their motive was, which should be answered by the end of the play. However, looking closer, the reader is also intrigued by what the canary and its death means and if that is a key piece to solving the crime. I believe that question will be answered by the end of the play, as well.
5. Use Ms. Hale to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, that is the dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what the character wants (NOTE: In Trifles the wants of Ms. Hale change as the play progresses). The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles for Ms. Hale. Mrs. Hale is just a farmer's wife, and I am sure did not think she would ever imagine herself in a situation such as the one the play revolves around. At the beginning, we see Mrs. Hale is not amused with the Sheriff and Attorney degrading the work women do. She seems a little miffed, and definitely does not want to be at the scene. For a short part, as she has a conversation with the County Attorney, she seems to be defending Mrs. Wright, and women in general, trying to prove their worth in society as housekeepers. This would be categorized as an obstacle against society, or perhaps another individual. One may believe she is annoyed with the Sheriff and Attorney in the moment, but the bigger picture shows how she's upset with society as a whole for creating this image and reputation of women. As she starts talking to Mrs. Peters, she is a bit bothered by the men snooping through Mrs. Wright's house and possessions without Mrs. Wright being allowed to be present. As we approach the end of the act, we clearly see Mrs. Hale intends on trying to keep Mrs. Wright innocent, wishing she had visited Mrs. Wright more often and assuming she could have maybe brought some happiness into her life. This seems to be an obstacle Mrs. Hale has against herself. The last obstacle we see is Mrs. Hale against fate. She cannot change what happened or change if Mrs. Wright committed the crime, yet tries to manipulate Mrs. Wright's fate by participating in lying to the men and tampering with evidence.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. In your estimation what is the most theatrical moment in Trifles and what happens during that moment which is so important to the outcome of the play? I believe the most theatrical moment of the play is when the women find the dead canary in the red box and are taken aback. This scene seems to contain important evidence and information that would help solve the murder, which is clear to both Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale. Slowly, the women start to piece together the mystery of the crime and realize that this bird and its death symbolizes something more that went on in the household.
7. Provide at least three examples of images in Trifles. How does the title of the play help us understand the images in the play? (Remember Ball says that, “An image is the use of something we know that tells us something we don’t know.” He goes on to say that images invoke and expand, rather than define and limit.”) Trifles are a type of dessert and during the play the men imply that women are just worried about making food and keeping the house clean when they say "women are used to worrying over trifles," as if to say that is all they are good for. As we see in the play, it is not the men but the women that are intelligent enough to start to figure out the crime. A few images in Trifles (other than its title) would be the messy quilt, the bird cage, and the bird, itself. All of these images are evidence of the crime and help us to better understand the crime, round out what actually happened and, most importantly, why.
8. Ordinarily, there are many themes in most plays. List the themes in Trifles. I think an obvious theme in Trifles is serving justice, but another underlying theme is the treatment of women in this time period and how it needed to change.
9. Most American plays have something to do with family and/or family relationships. What does family have to do with Trifles? Is family redefined in Trifles? We see several different versions of "families" in Trifles. First, we see a small family consisting of just Mr. and Mrs. Wright, where there was clear unhappiness among the two. They were a husband and wife who did not have kids and seemed to keep to themselves. Their relationship is inspected throughout the play as the women try to piece together the mystery. The two other families we see are the Peters and the Hales. Mr. Peters is the County Sheriff and his wife, while initially supports him and his work, ends up withholding information from him and tampering with evidence even when she knows it affects his work. Lastly, the Hales are a family that live on a farm and see like a typical lower to middle class family. Their English is not as crisp so we can see that neither Mr. or Mrs. Hale are very educated, yet we do not quite get to investigate their relationship as a couple. Both the Peters and Hales have children, yet have different roles in society. Each family in this play is very different from the next, illustrating how family can be defined in many ways, yet this event seems to bring everyone together.
Trifles Worksheet
1. In the space below, describe the stasis at the beginning of Trifles. In other words, “Where are we?” “When is it (time, day, and year)?” “Who are the people involved?” “What is the dramatic situation in which the characters find themselves as the play unfolds?”
The play was written in 1916 and is assumed to be set in that time period in the rural Midwest, based on a true murder that occurred in Iowa in 1900 that the author, Susan Glaspell, covered as a writer for the Des Moines Daily News. The play is set inside the Wrights' house a day after he was murdered there, presumably sometime in the morning or afternoon. The characters involved are the County Sheriff and his wife (Mrs. Peters), the County Attorney, a witness named Mr. Hale and his wife (Mrs. Hale). Additionally, two characters that are not in the scene but are the center of the story are Mr. Wright, who has been murdered, and his wife, Mrs. Wright (aka Minnie Foster). The play unfolds as the County Sheriff and County Attorney are trying to solve the murder of Mr. Wright, while the women are brought as guests to fetch some things to bring to Mrs. Wright.
2. What is the intrusion that causes the stasis to be broken and the dramatic action to develop, often at an increasingly rapid pace, to the end of the play?
I believe the intrusion occurs when Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale find the dead canary in the fancy red box. Prior to unveiling the bird, they found the broken bird cage and didn't think much of it, except that Mrs. Wright enjoyed singing and probably bought a canary from a man selling them a while back. When they find the bird, with its neck wrung, they gasp in horror and this is where the plot pivots and the women become vital characters in the story, as they have found evidence.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place?
The events take place at the scene of the crime. The unique factor that is out of the ordinary is that two women, who should not technically be allowed at the scene of the crime, are given permission to come along with the Sheriff and Attorney. This allows the story to unfold where the women start poking through the scene of the crime and eventually stumble upon some important pieces of evidence which they decide to tamper with and remove from the crime scene. Consequently, they have now manipulated the crime scene to make Mrs. Wright look less guilty and completely changed the case. In this time, women were not seen as intelligent, respected members of society, but rather keepers of the household, and not taken seriously. At the beginning of the play, we even see the Sheriff making fun of the women for eyeing the messed up sew job by Mrs. Wright on a quilt.
4. State the dramatic question or questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
Clearly, the reader wants to know who murdered Mr. Wright and what their motive was, which should be answered by the end of the play. However, looking closer, the reader is also intrigued by what the canary and its death means and if that is a key piece to solving the crime. I believe that question will be answered by the end of the play, as well.
5. Use Ms. Hale to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, that is the dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what the character wants (NOTE: In Trifles the wants of Ms. Hale change as the play progresses). The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles for Ms. Hale.
Mrs. Hale is just a farmer's wife, and I am sure did not think she would ever imagine herself in a situation such as the one the play revolves around. At the beginning, we see Mrs. Hale is not amused with the Sheriff and Attorney degrading the work women do. She seems a little miffed, and definitely does not want to be at the scene. For a short part, as she has a conversation with the County Attorney, she seems to be defending Mrs. Wright, and women in general, trying to prove their worth in society as housekeepers. This would be categorized as an obstacle against society, or perhaps another individual. One may believe she is annoyed with the Sheriff and Attorney in the moment, but the bigger picture shows how she's upset with society as a whole for creating this image and reputation of women. As she starts talking to Mrs. Peters, she is a bit bothered by the men snooping through Mrs. Wright's house and possessions without Mrs. Wright being allowed to be present. As we approach the end of the act, we clearly see Mrs. Hale intends on trying to keep Mrs. Wright innocent, wishing she had visited Mrs. Wright more often and assuming she could have maybe brought some happiness into her life. This seems to be an obstacle Mrs. Hale has against herself. The last obstacle we see is Mrs. Hale against fate. She cannot change what happened or change if Mrs. Wright committed the crime, yet tries to manipulate Mrs. Wright's fate by participating in lying to the men and tampering with evidence.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. In your estimation what is the most theatrical moment in Trifles and what happens during that moment which is so important to the outcome of the play?
I believe the most theatrical moment of the play is when the women find the dead canary in the red box and are taken aback. This scene seems to contain important evidence and information that would help solve the murder, which is clear to both Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale. Slowly, the women start to piece together the mystery of the crime and realize that this bird and its death symbolizes something more that went on in the household.
7. Provide at least three examples of images in Trifles. How does the title of the play help us understand the images in the play? (Remember Ball says that, “An image is the use of something we know that tells us something we don’t know.” He goes on to say that images invoke and expand, rather than define and limit.”)
Trifles are a type of dessert and during the play the men imply that women are just worried about making food and keeping the house clean when they say "women are used to worrying over trifles," as if to say that is all they are good for. As we see in the play, it is not the men but the women that are intelligent enough to start to figure out the crime. A few images in Trifles (other than its title) would be the messy quilt, the bird cage, and the bird, itself. All of these images are evidence of the crime and help us to better understand the crime, round out what actually happened and, most importantly, why.
8. Ordinarily, there are many themes in most plays. List the themes in Trifles.
I think an obvious theme in Trifles is serving justice, but another underlying theme is the treatment of women in this time period and how it needed to change.
9. Most American plays have something to do with family and/or family relationships. What does family have to do with Trifles? Is family redefined in Trifles?
We see several different versions of "families" in Trifles. First, we see a small family consisting of just Mr. and Mrs. Wright, where there was clear unhappiness among the two. They were a husband and wife who did not have kids and seemed to keep to themselves. Their relationship is inspected throughout the play as the women try to piece together the mystery. The two other families we see are the Peters and the Hales. Mr. Peters is the County Sheriff and his wife, while initially supports him and his work, ends up withholding information from him and tampering with evidence even when she knows it affects his work. Lastly, the Hales are a family that live on a farm and see like a typical lower to middle class family. Their English is not as crisp so we can see that neither Mr. or Mrs. Hale are very educated, yet we do not quite get to investigate their relationship as a couple. Both the Peters and Hales have children, yet have different roles in society. Each family in this play is very different from the next, illustrating how family can be defined in many ways, yet this event seems to bring everyone together.